I smiled from the top of my tower at Altair as he clashed blades with a few of the men on the practice field. I couldn't help it. I was still upset about what had happened inside, but I still loved him. My eyes widened at what had just went through my head. I knew somewhat about our past. I knew we had been partners and had married when we were drunk in Vegas on a mission, but I didn't know how I truly felt until now.

"If you stare any harder at him, he is going to have holes in his shirt."

My head flipped around and I stared at the young woman that stood next to me. Her green eyes held mirth, and I blushed at being caught. "I was just watching his technique. He is good." I turned back to the training yard.

"He must have had a good teacher. I don't think anyone here is that good. Not even our Grandmaster." She sat down on the edge next to me. "I'm Gwen." She held out her hand and I took it.

"Isabella." I smiled at her. "So, you are training to be an assassin?"

She nodded. "Trying at least. My mother was an assassin. She died when I was six. She was stationed in Denver."

I remembered that. The team was caught by Abstergo and executed. "I'm sorry to hear that. My mom and dad both died when I was ten. I know the feeling. Is your dad one as well?"

Gwen looked down at the ground before shaking her head. "No, he was a guy she met in college. They dated for a few years and then when Mom found out she was pregnant, they married. Moved here after school and that's when he found out who she really was. The Grandmaster at the time was my grandfather. He was not happy that Mom married a man outside the order."

I chuckled and leaned against the beam next to me. "I can understand that. I don't think my mother would have been happy with my choice of men. I know my father would have tried to run him off." I turned my eyes to her. "They would not have approved of the man I married."

"You're married?" She asked surprised. I nodded. "Is he here?" I nodded once more.

"He's the one I was staring at. I forget sometimes that he is mine." I sighed and casted my eyes at the ground a few stories down.

"Isabella!" I heard my name being called. Looking around, I saw Altair had left the training yard and was now walking over to me. "We need to meet with Rebecca and Dawson."

"Give me a sec." I smiled down at him. I turned to the young girl next to me. "Good luck on your training, Gwen. Maybe we can talk more later."

Smiling back at me, she nodded. "I would like that. There are not a lot of women here, and so… yeah."

"I know how you feel. When I was trained, I was the only woman there. Got harassed by the men every day." I knew all about being the outcast.

Her eyes widened. "You're an assassin?" I merely nodded. "I thought you were here for something else."

"I am, but I think it's time I got back to what I used to be." I stood. "See you later." And jumped down to the ground, rolled and came back on my feet right in front of Altair. "Let's go."

He wrapped his arm around my shoulders and we walked over to where Dawson and Rebecca were standing. William was talking to them as we walked up. "I take it you are heading off again, Rebecca." It was not a question, but a statement.

"Got to, Bill. Abstergo is out there, and we are the only thing standing between them and the world." She told him.

He looked back over at us. "And what of you two? I guess you are going with her?"

"I don't belong here. I came here to make sure nothing happened to Isabella, and I go where she goes." Altair met the man's look with one of his own.

I couldn't help but smile at him, and got a return one from him. William sighed and shook his head. "I wish you would four would change your mind."

"I'm sorry, but they are after me. I will not put this whole place at risk because of me." I could not do that, and looked up at the jump tower. Gwen watched us with fascination. "Gwen will make a fine addition to your ranks, with the right discipline."

"She is a headstrong girl."

Altair laughed lightly next to me. I knew what was going through his head. He was thinking about me. "I knew a girl once that was the same way. She turned into one of the best assassins I had ever met. A bit headstrong is a good thing sometimes. Makes you think outside the box."

"So where is this assassin?" He asked.

"She died saving the people who meant the world to her." I spoke up.

Dawson cleared his throat. "We had better get moving. The trek back to Texas is a long one."

He was right. "At least we have four drivers this time and not just two. We won't have to drive as long." Rebecca reached her hands for the sky, and stretched.

As we were walking away, William called to us. "You two know an awful lot about our world."

Altair looked over his shoulder. "I know a lot about the underground. It is my job to know things. Helps with catching the bad guy. Isabella was caught by Abstergo, so she knows everything that is going on. You don't have to be an assassin to know the truths in this world, William. You would do well to know that."

He continued to walk over to the car, his arm still around my shoulder.

*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*

I called Ezio when we were on the road. He sounded relieved to hear from me. 'I thought you guys would never call. What is going on?'

"Heading to meet the others." I told him. "How's everything on your end?"

'Hectic. I forgot about all the shit I had to do here. Jenna made me a list of chores to do before I leave again. By the time I am done, you guys are going to win this war and be crowned supreme rulers.' He chuckled in the phone.

"Well, you had better get to it then." I laughed alongside him.

'Ugh, sometimes I wonder why I married again.' And then I heard him curse in Italian. 'Merda! She heard me!'

"I will speak well of you at your funeral, my friend." Smiling, I slouched in my seat.

'Thank you and I had better get off of here. I will talk to you soon.'

"Bye Ezio." I hit the end button and sat the phone next to me. "Ezio says hi and to speak kind of him at his wake. I believe Jenna is about to kill him."

"What did he do this time?" Altair looked at me from his place in the driver's seat. I was in the passenger's seat. Dawson and Rebecca were sitting in the back, dozing. We decided to take the first shift.

"Wondered why he married again." I chuckled at the memory. "She heard him."

Altair laughed as well. "I would be surprised if he escapes without a wound."

We lapsed into silence for a while. I watched the trees rush past the window as we cruised along the back roads towards the highway. "Altair." I spoke.

"Yes?" He asked as he turned onto another street that would take him to the highway of our destination.

"Do you think I will ever remember everything?" I looked down at my hands in my lap. Since my time in the Animus, it seems that I was losing some of the memories that I had once gotten back, and a few new ones that I had made. I tried to recall what the name of the man that betrayed us was, and I could not remember, even though we had gone over that memory the day before.

I heard a sigh escape him. "I don't know. It seems every time you are put in that machine, you come out worse for wear. I will never let you go in that thing again."

"I never want to, but they know what we are now and who we are. If they dug deep enough, they know who leads the assassins. From what Ezio has told me, I knew it all, and that is what scares the ever loving piss out of me. They found me and used me." The one thing I was afraid of had come true. I had been used.

He reached for me and laid a hand on my leg. "It will be alright. If they had all that information, they would have already made their move. I don't think they got much, but they got enough to give them hope that you would wake up and lead them to the Apple."

"But I have put everyone at risk. Maybe I should have died back in that blast." Closing my eyes, I blew out the breath that I had just taken in. "Everyone would have been better off."

The car suddenly pulled over into a parking lot. I looked at him as he threw it into park. Rebecca and Dawson woke up and looked at us with heavy lidded eyes. "Is it time to switch?" Dawson asked as he rubbed his eyes.

Altair did not answer him, but glared at me. I shrunk down into my seat at the intensity of the glare. "Listen to me, and listen well. If I ever hear you say something like that again, I will hog tie and gag you, then throw you in a room until you regain your sanity. I was not better off without you. I went on a one man killing spree because I though they took you from me. I wanted blood and I didn't care how many people I went through to get it.

"The first night we were ever together, I left because I was afraid I would ruin things between us. The time you ran, I went nuts when I realized you were not coming back. I hunted for you, and could not find you. I pulled every string, looked under every rock to find you. I wanted to make it right. I wanted you back, but you could not be found. Then in Boston, I finally saw how much I had hurt you. I beat myself up for years because of that, then I saw you again at LaGuardia, I thought I would get a second chance, but damn, I never knew what to say to you." His eyes softened, and he sat back. "I'm sorry."

I looked at him and blinked. I was stunned at his reaction. I cleared my throat, and smiled gently. "Thank you and I guess I am sorry too."

He turned back to the windshield, put the car in drive and pulled out onto the street. I smiled and leaned back into my seat. I think that was the first time I could actually remember him being that sincere about anything. I felt my heart do a small jump in my chest.

"What the hell did we miss?" Rebecca asked from the back seat.

*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*

A couple hours later, we switched drivers. Rebecca took over, Dawson took my seat and I sat in the back with Altair. He was leaned against the door and I had my head on his lap. I was tired from the Animus session earlier that day, and I felt sleep begin to overtake me.

I don't know how long I was asleep, but I felt someone shake my shoulder. "Alanna, you need to wake up."

Opening my eyes slowly, I looked up at Altair. He was looking out the windshield, face hard. "What's wrong?"

"Ezio just called. They attacked him at his house."

I sat up quickly. "What? Is everyone…?" I let the question hang there.

He finally looked at me. "They are fine, but they are hunting us one by one. They did not just go after you. They are finding all of us. The war we have all feared had begun. We have targets on our heads." I saw fear in his eyes. The man that never showed fear was holding onto my hand like I was a lifeline.

"Conner and the others?" I asked.

"On the move. Broke up in two groups. Kate and Conner are heading south to the Gulf. Desmond and Tom are heading north to meet up with Ezio and Jenna. They are taking Marcus to Maya's in Salt Lake City." He lowered his gaze. "We are about to split up."

My eyes shot to the people in the front seat. Rebecca looked back at me. "Before you ask, we will be fine. We are all going to meet up later. In a safer country."

"Where?" I asked.

"Masyaf, Syria." I heard Dawson speak.

My head whipped around, eyes wide as I met Altair's gaze. "No, I…I can't go back there. We have avoided that place for seven hundred years. Why must we go back there?"

"It's the last place the Templars would look for us. We are public enemy right now, Alanna. We have to do what we need to do to survive. Isn't that what we have always done?" He took ahold of my hand and brought it to lips. "At least we can do this together. Come full circle."

I wanted to fight him over this. I wanted to scream and yell and throw a fit, but I knew it would be useless. I was acting like a child because of my fears, and from the look in his eyes, he was just as afraid as I was. "How are we getting there?" I slumped a bit in defeat.

"A friend of mine owns a plane. He is willing to fly us over to Spain. From there, we are going to have to break up again, and make our way to Masyaf on our own. For now, we have to make it to South Carolina. That is why we are breaking up now. Conner and Kate are heading to the Gulf, taking a boat to Florida and heading there. Des and Tom are taking motorcycles cross country. Ezio and Jenna are taking her Cessna. I am going to drop you guys off in Oklahoma. Desmond is leaving a present there for you two. He wouldn't say what it was.

"Becca and I are ditching this car, picking up my truck in Missouri and driving the rest of the way." Dawson took an exit onto another highway and continued his trek across the states.

I must have been out of it for a while if they had this all planned out. "Our stuff? Where is that?"

"Desmond and Tom are putting it in our car. Well, what they can." Altair told me.

Sitting up straight, I looked him in the eye. "I want my guns. My Brownings. I want them in the car." From the look I got, I knew that was about to start a fight.

"No, absolutely not." He glared.

I met his glare with one of my own. "Yes. I am an assassin and there is no hiding that anymore. I cannot hide my head under the sand for all eternity and play the innocent girl. I am not innocent. Not by a long shot. I do not want to kill everyone that I come across just the ones that want to kill us."

"And I told you I would handle that." His eyes narrowed even more. Stubborn man.

"You can't kill everyone, Altair. I want the guns and that is all I'm asking for." I sat back in the seat. "Please."

A sigh and I knew I had him. "I will make the call. You do know the ones we have were not your first set. These were your backups. The first pair was destroyed."

"I know. I figured as much." At least he finally agreed to it. I thought I was really going to have to play dirty with him. "How much longer until we get to the car?"

"Not until tomorrow. If you are going to catch them before they leave, you had better make the call. They were leaving in an hour or so." Rebecca held the phone over her head and Altair took it.

He dialed the number and waited for Desmond to answer. "Conner, I need a favor. Put the Brownings in the bag of my stuff."

I was close enough to hear what was said. 'You are going to give her guns to her?'

"Yeah, I guess I am. I'll explain later. Is the other bag packed as well?" He asked.

'Yeah, but why do you want those?' What was he talking about?

"Because I do that's why. Anyway, I need to get off here. I guess I will see you in a few days."

'Stay safe, and keep an eye open.'

"I will. You do the same." He hung up the phone and sat it down. "It's done. They will be in the bag."

I moved closer to him and felt his arms wrap around me. "Thank you."

He kissed the top of my head and we sat there in the darkness of the car, holding onto each other, wondering what the next few days was going to bring.

I am going to warn you now before I post the next chapter. It will be dark. Darker than most. You have been warned. I needed something that would pale in comparison to everything that has happened and put everything on its head. Again, you have been warned.